ISO/IEC 19794-8:2011 describes all characteristics of a fingerprint in a small data record. Thus it allows for the extraction of both spectral information (orientation, frequency, phase, etc.) and features (minutiae, core, ridge count, etc.). Transformations like translation and rotation can also be accommodated by the format defined in ISO/IEC 19794-8:2011.

ISO/IEC 19794-8:2011 supports the proliferation of low-cost commercial fingerprint sensors with limited coverage, dynamic range, or resolution. Thus, it defines a data record that can be used to store biometric information on a variety of storage mediums (including, but not limited to, portable devices and smart cards).